OBJECTIVE: To validate and develop an instrument in Bahasa Melayu to assess the psychological distress and self-medication during pandemic Covid-19 in WP Labuan.
METHODS: A pilot study was conducted among 160 participants in WP Labuan. Reliability testing on internal consistency and content validity was performed on the adapted Covid-19 Peritraumatic Distress Index (CPDI) as well as domain on knowledge, practice and attitude of self-medication.
RESULT: A panel of seven experts evaluated the research instrument for content validity and it was found to have good content item validity. The CPDI domain showed good internal consistency of Cronbach's Alpha of 0.919. The mean (SD) CPDI score of the respondents in WP Labuan was 32.55 (15.98). 64.2% of the respondents experienced psychological distress. The variable for Area (town/countryside) was found to be statistically significant (p<0.05) to be associated with self-medication during the pandemic.
CONCLUSION: The instrument established sound reliability and validity and therefore, can be an effective tool for assessing psychological distress and self-medication in the Malaysian population.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: A randomised control study with a two-group, single-blind design and baseline evaluation was selected. Social media sites were used to advertise for participants, who were then admitted after meeting the requirements. Participants who met the eligibility requirements were randomly split into two groups. Each group received a total of three sessions of online therapy (MT or CT), once every two weeks, as well as one phone call per week as reinforcement. At the beginning and end of the intervention, participants completed questionnaires (1st week and 5th week). Generalized Estimating Equation (GEE) statistical analysis was used to analyse all the variables.
RESULTS: The MT group experienced a statistically significant decrease in cigarette consumption (β: -3.50, 95% Wald CI: - 4.62, -2.39) compared to the CT group over time. Furthermore, the MT group demonstrated significant improvements in their scores for the AAQ-2, anxiety, stress, depression and mindfulness compared to the CT group.
CONCLUSION: Online MT is more successful at assisting smokers in lowering their daily cigarette intake and supporting their mental health during the smoking cessation process. Further longitudinal comparisons of the effectiveness of online MT should be undertaken using online platforms in future studies.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study is an analysis of a matched case-control study with a ratio of 1:2. The case group contained 206 respondents, and the control group contained 412. All CRC cases were confirmed with the histological results. The control group was matched for links between age, sex and ethnicity with CRC. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences Statistics (SPSS) IBM version 28.0 was used to conduct descriptive analysis using chi-squared testing and simple logistic regression. The statistical significance was P < 0.05.
RESULT: Overall, 618 respondents took part in this survey, of which 256 (41.4%) were female and 362 (58.6%) were male. The maximum age was 76, with a mean age ± SD of 53.17 ± 11.4. Those of Bajau ethnicity comprised 24.6% (152) of the population, followed by Dusun with 22.8% (141), Kadazan with 17.6% (109%), other North Borneo ethnic groups with 15.5% (96), Bugis with 9.7% (60), Brunei with 4.4% (27) and other predominant races with 5.3% (33). Regression analyses revealed that the incidence of CRC in North Borneo, Malaysia, was substantially correlated with income, occupation, other linked diseases and BMI.
CONCLUSION: Various risk factors are linked to CRC, based on the findings related to socio-demographic characteristics and BMI. Therefore, to lower the nationwide prevalence of CRC, national public health campaigns should include collaboration with the regional authorities to highlight the incidence and risk factors of CRC based on ethnicity.
Methods: A cross-sectional study with ten small scale manufacturers participated accounting for a total of 300 respondents. Data were collected from July to August 2020 using the NOSACQ-50 questionnaire.
Results: The prevalence of occupational injury for the past 12 months was at 18%. The most often injured body parts were hands and legs while among the most common injury types were open wound, burns and bleeding. The mean NOSACQ-50 scores for all dimensions are good. The associated factors are working hours per week, and compliance to SOP. There are differences in the mean scores of NOSACQ-50 between injured and non-injured workers across all dimensions.
Conclusion: The safety climate among manufacturing industry employees is at a good level, while the prevalence of occupational injury is relatively low.
METHODS: A cross-sectional analytical study was carried out. Self-administered questionnaires were given to 400 patients who registered at an outpatient clinic in April 2018. Convenience sampling was applied.
RESULTS: Monthly income, education level, occupation, and knowledge level are significantly associated with attitude of the respondents toward organ and tissue donation. Occupation influenced attitude toward organ donation. Knowledge of organ donation and brain death both significantly affected attitude toward organ donation.
CONCLUSION: The greater the knowledge of organ donation and brain death, the more positive impression or attitude toward organ donation. Education level and income are the main predictors that influence attitude toward organ donation. Hence, it is important for public health units to promote and deliver public education on organ donation, change public misconceptions, and work parallel with hospitals to increase organ donation rates in Sabah.
METHODS: We reanalyzed the empirical data from the Health Insurance Plan trial in 1963 to the UK age trial in 1991 and their follow-up data published until 2015. We first performed Bayesian conjugated meta-analyses on the heterogeneity of attendance rate, sensitivity, and over-detection and their impacts on advanced stage breast cancer and death from breast cancer across trials using Bayesian Poisson fixed- and random-effect regression model. Bayesian meta-analysis of causal model was then developed to assess a cascade of causal relationships regarding the impact of both attendance and sensitivity on 2 main outcomes.
RESULTS: The causes of heterogeneity responsible for the disparities across the trials were clearly manifested in 3 components. The attendance rate ranged from 61.3% to 90.4%. The sensitivity estimates show substantial variation from 57.26% to 87.97% but improved with time from 64% in 1963 to 82% in 1980 when Bayesian conjugated meta-analysis was conducted in chronological order. The percentage of over-detection shows a wide range from 0% to 28%, adjusting for long lead-time. The impacts of the attendance rate and sensitivity on the 2 main outcomes were statistically significant. Causal inference made by linking these causal relationships with emphasis on the heterogeneity of the attendance rate and sensitivity accounted for the variation in the reduction of advanced breast cancer (none-30%) and of mortality (none-31%). We estimated a 33% (95% CI: 24-42%) and 13% (95% CI: 6-20%) breast cancer mortality reduction for the best scenario (90% attendance rate and 95% sensitivity) and the poor scenario (30% attendance rate and 55% sensitivity), respectively.
CONCLUSION: Elucidating the scenarios from high to low performance and learning from the experiences of these trials helps screening policy-makers contemplate on how to avoid errors made in ineffective studies and emulate the effective studies to save women lives.
OBJECTIVE: The study objective was to investigate whether underlying associations exist between prostate cancer risk and male self-reported body size and shape.
METHODS: Data were collected from a large case-control study of men (1928 cases and 2043 controls) using self-administered questionnaires. Data from self-reported pictograms of perceived body size relating to three decades of life (20's, 30's and 40's) were recorded and analysed, including the pattern of change. The associations of self-identified body shape with prostate cancer risk were also explored.
RESULTS: Self-reported body size for men in their 20's, 30's and 40's did not appear to be associated with prostate cancer risk. More than half of the subjects reported an increase in self-reported body size throughout these three decades of life. Furthermore, no association was observed between self-reported body size changes and prostate cancer risk. Using 'symmetrical' body shape as a reference group, subjects with an 'apple' shape showed a significant 27% reduction in risk (Odds ratio = 0.73, 95% C.I. 0.57-0.92).
CONCLUSIONS: Change in self-reported body size throughout early to mid-adulthood in males is not a significant risk factor for the development of prostate cancer. Body shape indicative of body fat distribution suggested that an 'apple' body shape was protective and inversely associated with prostate cancer risk when compared with 'symmetrical' shape. Further studies which investigate prostate cancer risk and possible relationships with genetic factors known to influence body shape may shed further light on any underlying associations.